About

Josephine Allen, an Australian storytelling couple, know it takes two to tango.

Two to really get the feeling of romance.

Two to live the dream, then produce enthralling stories about it.

He was a nerdy kid. At eight, he’d devoured HG Wells’ Outline of History. This sparked a lifelong fascination in the sweep of history and its stories. Her early talents involved words (spelling and grammar) and music (piano).

Drawn together by a shared love of music and the offbeat, they met as young adults at the Sydney Fencing Club over sabres (how historical is that?). They married and lived in Papua New Guinea, then brought up their family on the NSW far north coast. They now live in suburban Brisbane beside a bushland reserve, home to wallabies, birds and reptiles.

For many years, he worked as a land surveyor; she, as a secretary. Then ambition struck them both. He started writing, and she evolved into a journalist, copywriter and editor.

At first, they had minor successes, with several short stories published in various magazines, and two novels picked up by Jacobyte Books, an early e-publisher.

These days, nearly everyone is going indie, so they jumped on the bandwagon. That’s why their name and books now appear on your radar, via the magic of e-publishing.

For your pleasure, Josephine Allen spins more stories in many different and fascinating historical epochs … as well as the present and the near future.

And for something completely different, here are a couple of true stories from our New Guinea days. Topophiliadescribes a strange and educational encounter, and The Romantic Tropic Shore an unintentionally farcical reunion.